Land Agent Weary (The Practice of Empathy)

It’s not uncommon to end the day feeling drained—shoulders tight from the drive, voice tired from repeating the same talking points, and mind spinning from a dozen conversations that were polite, tense, or somewhere in between. Being a land agent isn’t just a job of logistics—it’s a job of people. And people, as anyone who’s spent time knocking on doors can attest, come with all the nuance, emotion, and unpredictability you might expect.

There’s a unique kind of weariness that settles in after a long week in the field. It’s not just physical. It’s the kind of fatigue that comes from listening—really listening—to landowners’ concerns, answering the same questions again and again with patience, and navigating conversations that are rarely black and white.

This isn’t a complaint. It’s simply the truth of the work. We need to recognize that landowners in an active energy zone also experience this weariness, especially with constant outreach from the land agents.

Behind every easement agreement or right-of-way signature is a relationship—sometimes brand new, sometimes long-standing, often layered with history. There’s trust to be built, concerns to be addressed, and timelines to keep moving. It’s an incredibly human job, which is exactly why it requires more than technical know-how. It requires empathy. 

Not the kind of empathy that’s soft or sentimental. The kind that’s practiced. Intentional. Quietly powerful.

It means understanding that for a landowner, this isn’t just a line on a map. It’s their family’s property, their livelihood, their home. It might be the first they’re hearing of a project that’s been in planning stages for years. It might be the fifth time someone’s asked to walk their land in a decade. Either way, their questions are valid. Their hesitations are real. And the way they’re treated—especially in the early stages—sets the tone for everything that follows 

It’s not always easy. The days are long. The conversations can be emotionally charged. It’s common to be met with suspicion or frustration. And yet, the agent shows up—again and again—with respect, professionalism, and with an ear to listen… A commitment to listen.

Empathy, in this context, isn’t about always getting a “yes.” It’s about keeping the door open. It’s about recognizing that trust doesn’t happen in a single visit. It’s earned through consistency, clarity, and showing landowners that their voice matters—even if the outcome isn’t what they hoped for.

But practicing empathy doesn’t mean absorbing everything. It’s easy to carry the tension of the day home with you—to take the hard conversations personally or to replay the ones that didn’t go as planned. Over time, that can wear on even the most seasoned agents.

That’s why boundaries matter. So does support. Behind every land agent in the field should be a team that understands the emotional labor of the work, not just the procedural parts. People who know when it’s time to talk something through, or when a small act of kindness—a check-in call, a shared story, a little encouragement—makes all the difference.

Because this is the quiet work that makes progress possible. This is the work that builds credibility with landowners and eases their concerns and uncertainties.

Infrastructure projects, no matter how big or small, start with conversations. The kind that unfolds across kitchen tables, down gravel roads, and in the spaces between paperwork and people. And while those moments may not make the news, they’re what move things forward—not just contracts and timelines, but relationships and trust.

So if you’re feeling land agent weary, you’re not alone. And if you’re showing up anyway—with empathy, with patience, with a genuine desire to listen—you’re doing work that matters, even when it’s hard to see in the moment. Remember to look through the landowner’s lens too. They are weary, and they keep showing up because it’s their land, their legacy. 

Empathy isn’t always easy. But it’s what holds this whole system together.